


Power Trip: Tony Wyzek's Story

by reader1718



Category: X-Men - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-07
Updated: 2015-01-07
Packaged: 2018-03-05 14:26:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3123473
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reader1718/pseuds/reader1718





	Power Trip: Tony Wyzek's Story

Power Trip: Tony Wyzek’s Story

“But Riff, think about it. Any one of us could be a mutant. It’s not impossible. Mutations aren’t something that only occur in families like most traits. They just occur without warning. They don’t show up till puberty and I’m the only one of us that has hit puberty. You never can tell,” Tony Wyzek said to his friends. “Tony can you please shut up about that stuff and let’s talk about something else for a change? You’re driving me crazy,” Riff said, exasperated. “Okay, okay. Geez. Sorry,” Tony replied. “Here’s your new topic: finally turning thirteen! I can’t believe you’re the first one of us Jets to become an official teenager," Riff said. “I know. I can’t believe it either. I am finally a free man...er teenager. Things are gonna be great from now on,” Tony declared happily. If Tony had known what would happen in just a few hours, he might not have been so happy. But Tony remained blissfully unaware of how fast his life was about to change. A few hours later, Tony headed for home where an ordinary situation would cause extraordinary changes for Tony.

 

When Tony got home, he found out that his grandma (his dad’s mom) was there for a visit. He had to end up helping her get around a lot because she was rather unsteady on her feet, even with a walker. “So, Grandma, how long are you here for this time?” Tony asked. There was a second of silence and Tony wondered if she hadn’t heard him. Then he turned around and noticed his grandma clutching her chest. “Grandma? Grandma! Mom! Dad! Get out here!” Tony shouted, trying in vain to support his grandmother. Just then, though, he felt a fierce painful headache and what sounded like hundreds of voices in his head. Then he saw fire and then saw his grandmother’s body splitting up and going off in different directions. Tony tried to put her back together, but she gave back any energy Tony gave her. Tony didn’t even notice his dad come up and try to support him as his mother saw to his grandmother. “No! I’m dying!” Tony shouted as he felt everything his grandmother felt. “What’s wrong with him, Jack?!” Linda shouted over Tony’s screams. “I don’t know! Unless...quick, check on Mom and see if she’s dying. I have a hunch,” Jack shouted back. Linda checked and confirmed the old woman’s pulse was indeed slowing down. Tony somehow thought he was the one dying, though, but why? “I think Tony might be a mutant. That might be his power--to sense other people dying. It’s a rather morbid thought, I know, but I can’t think what else it could be. I can call my old professor, Charles Xavier, to be sure if you want. He’s an expert on genetics and he’s a telepath. If anyone will know what’s wrong with Tony he will. He runs that school, the Xavier Institute, up in Westchester and he has a computer called Cerebro that can detect other mutants. If Tony has registered on Cerebro, then we’ll know for sure he’s a mutant,” Jack said. “Okay, you take Tony to his room and then go call Charles. I hope he can come over and tell us what’s wrong with Tony,” Linda said as she helped Jack’s mother into the living room and laid her down on the couch. Jack helped Tony to his room where the boy started screaming again, this time claiming he was dead. Then objects in the room floated up and began to swirl around Tony’s head, some of them hitting him. Jack knew Tony’s condition was getting worse and raced off to call Charles immediately.

 

Cerebro had indeed registered Tony as a new mutant, so Charles had been expecting Jack’s call. He informed Jack that he was right about Tony being a mutant. It turned out Tony was a class five telepath and telekinetic, which is why Tony had been able to feel his grandma’s death and why he had started screaming. His brain was on overload from hearing everyone’s thoughts and the trauma of the death. Tony was a basket case now, not talking and unable to cope around large groups of people which eliminated any social interaction he might have at all. Charles knew he had to help Tony before the boy became a danger to himself and others, so he told Jack he would come over and help Tony learn to control his new powers. Within a half hour, Charles had arrived at the Wyzek house and Jack and Linda showed him to Tony’s now-bare room where Tony was standing at the window, silent as the grave, just staring out at the street in front of the house. _Tony, my name is Professor Charles Xavier and I am a telepath just like you. I understand what you’re going through and I know it’s scary, but I can help you to understand your powers and control them. I want to help you if you will only let me_ , Charles said telepathically to Tony. Surprised that somebody had thought to speak to his mind and not his ears, Tony turned around and spoke for the first time since his grandmother’s death. "I’d like that," Tony said.

 

From that day on, Professor Xavier worked with Tony a few hours a day to help him control his powers. Soon Tony was able to spell his name in the air with blocks and make himself float. He was also able to turn his telepathy on and off. Finally he was able to go into the other room and talk to his parents, who were so glad to have him back to his old self again. After about two weeks Professor Xavier felt that Tony had enough control to try another experiment--going to a local mall and spending some time there interacting with people. Tony was rather reluctant to try it, but was finally persuaded. He mentioned it when his friends called him on the phone that evening and the Jets all made plans to be at the mall when he was. Unfortunately they didn’t make it there till after he left, which would turn out to be a good thing since things would end up not going as planned when Tony and Charles were at the mall.

 

"Do you think we could try this some other time..like maybe tomorrow?" Tony asked the Prof when they finally arrived at the mall. "No, Tony. You will eventually need to try being in a group social situation and if you don’t try to do this now, then you’ll spend the rest of your life hiding. I don’t think you want that," Charles said to him. "Okay, I’ll try," Tony said and began walking around in the mall with Charles a little ways behind him. _See. You’re doing fine_ , the Professor said in Tony’s mind. _I am, aren’t I? I can’t believe it! I’m actually able to be around other people again! This is wonderful! You’ve done so much for me. Thank you so--_ , Tony’s thought trailed off as a boy ran by him shouting "Out of my way!" and knocked him down. Tony fell to the ground and suddenly all the thoughts of everyone around him came flooding into his mind again, causing him intense pain. _Tony, don’t lose control. You can control it. Just--_ , the Professor started to say, but it was too late. Tony’s mind, overwhelmed by the sudden onslaught, lashed out in whatever way it could, causing Tony to telekinetically lift things off the ground and destroy a whole quarter of the mall. 

 

Of course Tony’s parents had to find out about it when they got home. Charles apologized, saying he’d thought Tony was ready when the boy obviously wasn’t, that he’d pushed him too far, too fast. He agreed to wall off Tony’s telepathic abilities temporarily till Tony was able to cope with his telekinesis to give the boy some peace of mind. Jack wanted to know why Charles couldn’t just erase Tony’s mental powers and alter his memory of his grandma’s death so he’d no longer blame himself. However, Charles explained that that wasn’t what he did and that any barriers he put up would only be temporary. Tony’s telepathy would reemerge over time, but only when he was ready and able to deal with it. Everyone at the mall attributed the destruction to a terrorist bomb thanks to the professor planting the suggestion in their minds, but the incident was enough to convince everyone that Tony needed a stable environment where he could learn how to deal with his powers without fear of persecution. So it was decided that Tony would attend the Xavier Institute, which was where he went the following day. Riff and the others found out he’d gone to a special school, but that was all they knew. They wanted to come visit him right away, but Tony asked for a year or two to get used to it first, so that was what they did. 

The Jets visited several times over the course of the following year and things were fine between them and Tony. However, the Jets soon found out Tony’s huge secret and what the Xavier Institute really was. Tony had been at the school for four years when his telepathy finally came back. However, things were much better this time since Tony was older and had full control of his telekinesis. The Professor began teaching Tony how to use Cerebro for various things and he learned how to use his powers in conjunction with those of his teammates in the Danger Room. Things were going great until his friends’ next visit when the Jets accidentally observed some of the kids using their powers and began thinking of the other kids as freaks--thoughts that Tony easily picked up and grew offended by. He accidentally included himself among the other mutant kids at the Institute, meaning Tony had to end up demonstrating just how powerful he really was by levitating several objects on the lawn and making the fountain flow upward instead of downward. His friends’ jaws dropped when the water started breaking the laws of physics. They were totally in awe of his abilities and quit making fun of him.

 

From then on, the Jets would come even more regularly just to see their friend and the cool things he could do. They were occasionally allowed to watch his training sessions and he would go off campus with them to do something in town. He eventually got a job at Doc’s store and started working for a living. He still had a curfew at the Institute, but Doc understood and let him get back in time for curfew so he wouldn’t get in trouble. Then one day, Riff told Tony about a dance that was taking place down at the gym and asked if he would like to go. Tony was wary of going out in a public setting since he still hadn’t forgotten the mall incident, but Riff finally convinced him to go. When he got to the dance, Tony stayed off to the side, not really hanging out with anyone and keeping to himself a lot, but finally a young girl came over to him, having been curious about him. This girl was Maria, sister to Bernardo Nunez who led the Jets’ rival gang, the Sharks. This meant that if Tony was seen with her there would be trouble. He was also worried about the fact that he and all the X-Men seemed to attract trouble, and he didn’t want to endanger her. Finally, though, he started talking to her and eventually agreed to try a temporary relationship. However, her brother Bernardo found out about it and forbade it, so the two of them had to sneak around to see each other.

 

One day Maria decided to surprise Tony and accidentally found out his big secret. She was passing through downtown when she saw an iron rail crash into the side of a building. Maria ran for cover and looked around to see what was going on. That was when she spotted several people flying, shooting ice, shooting lasers from their eyes, and other assorted things. Then she saw a giant piece of debris flying toward where she was hiding. Maria cringed, waiting for the end, when the debris suddenly halted in midair. Maria turned to look and saw a boy about eighteen years old with his hands extended and a look of intense concentration on his face. The boy gestured and the debris went off the other way. He then turned around to direct his attention to some debris behind her and Maria saw his face. It was Tony! The boy she loved was a mutant! She knew he needed to know she’d found out about his powers, but as it turned out, she didn’t even have to tell him. Tony turned around, saw her there, and gasped. He lost his concentration on the piece of debris he was levitating for a moment, but quickly recovered and managed to set it down gently. Finally the battle was over, but Tony knew his trouble was just beginning as he still had to talk to Maria.

 

Tony didn’t even bother changing out of his X-Men uniform before talking to Maria because he wanted her to see the real him. He found her by the side of the building and they went to a nearby rooftop to talk. He apologized for not telling her the truth and explained that he’d only done it because he’d been so used to being ostracized and rejected for the last several years of his life. To his surprise, Maria accepted him the way he was and said it didn’t change her opinion of him. However after several battles in which she’d been put in danger because she was hanging around him, Tony knew he would have to end their relationship. So one day, he reluctantly broke up with her, explaining that he didn’t want to see her hurt. Maria was brokenhearted, but she knew he was right, so she accepted it. She still watched him on the news whenever their battles were covered, though, and didn’t believe any of the anti-mutant propaganda that was being spread about him and others like him, but rather marveled at his powers and how he could stand to live in a world that hated and feared him. She would never forget the perspective she had gained on mutants from loving one.

 

 


End file.
